Commuting in Burke County, North Dakota: how long it takes, when people leave home and how they get to work. Ask Map AI about any address.
You9/24/26, 7:56 PM
How many minutes is the average drive to work in Burke County?
Map AI9/24/26, 7:56 PM
Commute Time Burden in Burke County: Annual Hours and Cost
Commuters in Burke County spend about 42 minutes on the road round trip each working day. Over a typical 250-day work year, that adds up to roughly 177 hours, about 7.4 full days, spent commuting. That is 54% more time on the road than the North Dakota average of 13.8 minutes each way, a difference of 7.4 minutes.
Burke County holds about 0.3% of North Dakota's population but accounts for roughly 0.4% of its total commuting time.
Working from home just 2 days a week in Burke County would save about 71 hours of drive time a year, worth roughly $2,193 at the same national wage assumption used above.
Area
One-Way Commute
Daily Round-Trip
Yearly Time Spent
Estimated Yearly Cost
Local Road Traffic (VPD)
Burke County
21.2 min
42.4 min
177 hrs/yr
$5,482
89
North Dakota
13.8 min
27.6 min
115 hrs/yr
$3,567
360
United States
22.4 min
44.8 min
187 hrs/yr
$5,790
1,355
The estimated yearly cost applies a single national rule of thumb (U.S. Bureau of Labor
Statistics average hourly earnings), not a measurement of wages in this area - treat it
as a rough estimate, not a paycheck figure. Local road traffic counts, vehicles per day
on non-highway roads, come from proprietary
Ticon and
TrafficZoom data.
On average, it takes
21.2
minutes to get to work in
Burke County.
That's 5% shorter than the 22.4-minute U.S. average.
Among the 5 slowest counties in North Dakota
The most common departure window is 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM, followed by 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM. Driving is the most common commute choice, followed by working from home. About 10.3% work from home.
How People Get to Work in Burke County
Car:
81.8%
Worked at Home:
10.3%
Walked:
7.5%
Other:
0.4%
Motorcycle:
0.1%
Public Transportation:
< 0.1%unusually low
Taxi:
< 0.1%unusually low
Bicycle:
< 0.1%unusually low
Public transit is essentially absent in Burke County, versus 0.3% in North Dakota.
Taking a taxi is essentially absent in Burke County, versus 0.1% in North Dakota.
Biking is essentially absent in Burke County, versus 0.3% in North Dakota.
Commute Mode Trends in Burke County, 2009-2024
This chart shows how workers in Burke County get to work, as a share of all workers aged 16 and over, across 16 U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS) releases from 2009 to 2024. Each release is a 5-year estimate: the 2024 figures cover surveys taken from 2020 to 2024. Because neighboring releases share most of their survey years, the lines move gradually, and a sudden change such as the rise of remote work in 2020 spreads across several releases. Hover over or tap a line to highlight it, and use the legend to show or hide a mode. Driving starts hidden so the smaller modes stay readable.
Share of workers aged 16 and over, by ACS 5-year release year. Source: U.S. Census Bureau.Show commute mode data by year
Year
Car
Worked at Home
Walked
Other
Motorcycle
Public Transportation
Taxi
Bicycle
2009
81.2%
7.9%
9.4%
0.9%
0.0%
0.3%
0.0%
0.2%
2010
82.4%
7.0%
8.7%
1.4%
0.0%
0.2%
0.0%
0.3%
2011
81.7%
6.9%
9.9%
1.1%
0.0%
0.2%
0.0%
0.2%
2012
80.5%
7.0%
10.5%
1.3%
0.0%
0.4%
0.0%
0.3%
2013
78.9%
7.8%
10.7%
1.8%
0.0%
0.3%
0.0%
0.6%
2014
82.1%
6.8%
9.3%
1.0%
0.0%
0.2%
0.0%
0.6%
2015
80.2%
8.2%
10.0%
0.7%
0.0%
0.4%
0.0%
0.6%
2016
83.8%
8.4%
6.5%
0.5%
0.0%
0.5%
0.0%
0.4%
2017
83.6%
7.8%
8.0%
0.4%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.3%
2018
85.5%
6.1%
8.4%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
2019
85.2%
6.3%
8.2%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.3%
2020
84.0%
8.1%
7.8%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.2%
2021
81.9%
8.6%
9.3%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.2%
2022
81.1%
9.9%
8.4%
0.4%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.2%
2023
80.2%
10.9%
8.3%
0.4%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.2%
2024
81.8%
10.3%
7.5%
0.4%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
Driving was the most common way to get to work in every release from 2009 to 2024. Its share was highest in 2018 at 85.5% and lowest in 2013 at 78.9%. Overall it rose from 81.2% in 2009 to 81.8% in 2024, up 0.6 percentage points. It has risen in the latest release.
Working from home gained the most ground in Burke County: its share of workers rose from 7.9% in 2009 to 10.3% in 2024, up 2.4 percentage points. Most of that increase, 4.0 points, came in the releases after 2019, which include the pandemic years.
Walking lost the most ground, falling from 9.4% to 7.5% of workers (down 1.9 percentage points).
Working from home overtook walking to become the 2nd most common choice in the 2022 release and has stayed ahead since.
Commute Start Times in Burke County
What Time Do People Leave for Work in Burke County?
The bars show when commuters in Burke County leave home for work, as a share of everyone who commutes (people who work from home are not counted), from the 2024 ACS 5-year estimates. The thin violet marks show North Dakota for comparison. Hover over or tap a row for the exact numbers.
12:00-4:59 AM
12:00-4:59 AMBurke County1.7%North Dakota3.6%
1.7%
5:00-5:29 AM
5:00-5:29 AMBurke County2.4%North Dakota2.7%
2.4%
5:30-5:59 AM
5:30-5:59 AMBurke County1.3%North Dakota4.4%
1.3%
6:00-6:29 AM
6:00-6:29 AMBurke County10.2%North Dakota6.7%
10.2%
6:30-6:59 AM
6:30-6:59 AMBurke County6.0%North Dakota11.2%
6.0%
7:00-7:29 AM
7:00-7:29 AMBurke County29.3%North Dakota14.8%
29.3%
7:30-7:59 AM
7:30-7:59 AMBurke County18.4%North Dakota20.9%
18.4%
8:00-8:29 AM
8:00-8:29 AMBurke County13.4%North Dakota11.0%
13.4%
8:30-8:59 AM
8:30-8:59 AMBurke County2.9%North Dakota4.7%
2.9%
9:00-9:59 AM
9:00-9:59 AMBurke County3.1%North Dakota4.5%
3.1%
10:00-10:59 AM
10:00-10:59 AMBurke County0.7%North Dakota2.3%
0.7%
11:00-11:59 AM
11:00-11:59 AMBurke County0.5%North Dakota1.0%
0.5%
12:00-3:59 PM
12:00-3:59 PMBurke County3.7%North Dakota6.4%
3.7%
4:00-11:59 PM
4:00-11:59 PMBurke County6.5%North Dakota5.9%
6.5%
Burke CountyNorth DakotaSource: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-year estimates
The busiest time to head out in Burke County is 7:00-7:29 AM, when 29.3% of commuters leave home, compared with 14.8% across North Dakota. Early starts are less common than in North Dakota: 5.4% of commuters leave before 6 AM, versus 10.7% there. The morning rush is more concentrated than in North Dakota: 67.1% of departures fall in the two hours from 6:30 to 8:29 AM, versus 57.9% there. About 1 in 7 commuters (14.4%) leave at 9 AM or later, which usually points to shift work, flexible hours or part-time jobs.
When people leave matters as much as how far they go. Rush-hour traffic shrinks how much ground a 20-minute trip covers, so a trade area drawn as a simple circle often takes in neighborhoods that customers or staff would never drive from and misses others that are an easy trip. A drive-time zone, also called an isochrone, outlines every place within a set number of minutes of an address, which makes it the more honest way to size a store's catchment, a hiring area or the commute from a new home.
See it for yourself on the interactive map: click any spot in Burke County, pick a 5, 10, 15 or 30-minute drive and see the local demographics of the people who live within that exact drive time.
Is Burke County Waking Up Earlier? Typical Departure Time, 2009-2024
Each line follows the typical (median) departure time: the moment by which half of commuters have already left home. Higher on the chart means a later start. Setting Burke County next to North Dakota and the U.S. shows whether local mornings are drifting earlier or later than everyone else's. The figures span 16 ACS 5-year releases, so changes build up gradually rather than jumping from one year to the next.
Median time commuters leave home, by ACS 5-year release year. Source: U.S. Census Bureau.Show typical departure times by year
Year
Burke County
North Dakota
United States
2009
7:42 AM
7:42 AM
7:37 AM
2010
7:43 AM
7:42 AM
7:38 AM
2011
7:41 AM
7:41 AM
7:38 AM
2012
7:38 AM
7:40 AM
7:38 AM
2013
7:32 AM
7:40 AM
7:39 AM
2014
7:37 AM
7:39 AM
7:39 AM
2015
7:33 AM
7:38 AM
7:38 AM
2016
7:31 AM
7:38 AM
7:38 AM
2017
7:32 AM
7:38 AM
7:38 AM
2018
7:34 AM
7:38 AM
7:37 AM
2019
7:28 AM
7:38 AM
7:37 AM
2020
7:25 AM
7:39 AM
7:37 AM
2021
7:25 AM
7:39 AM
7:37 AM
2022
7:30 AM
7:39 AM
7:37 AM
2023
7:28 AM
7:39 AM
7:38 AM
2024
7:29 AM
7:40 AM
7:38 AM
In 2024, half of commuters in Burke County were on the road by 7:29 AM, 13 minutes earlier than in 2009 (7:42 AM). The shift is sharper than across North Dakota, where the typical start moved 2 minutes earlier. Commuters in Burke County now leave 9 minutes earlier than the typical American commuter (7:38 AM).
How does Burke County's commute time compare?
Metric
Burke County
North Dakota
US Average
Avg. Commute Time
21.2 min
13.8 min
22.4 min
Departure Window
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
Secondary Departure Window
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
07:00 AM – 07:29 AM
07:30 AM – 07:59 AM
Work From Home
10.3%
8.1%
15.0%
Walked
7.5%
3.2%
2.4%
Public Transit
< 0.1%
0.3%
3.2%
The average commute time in Burke County is 21.2 minutes, longer than the 13.8 minutes in North Dakota.
0.0% commute by public transit, lower than the 0.3% in North Dakota. 7.5% commute by walking, higher than the 3.2% in North Dakota.
Burke County, ND Commute Compared With Nearby Counties
Burke County, ND is the smallest of the 6 counties compared here, 2,156 residents against a local median of 9,507. The measure that sets Burke County, ND apart most is work from home: 10.3%, 119% above the local median of 4.7%.
One-way commute tells the same story from another angle: 21.2 min against a local median of 13.9 min, 52% above it. The one measure here that carries a verdict is one-way commute, and at 52% above the local median it puts Burke County, ND at the weaker end of the local range. The counties themselves sit within 1.8% of each other on work from home, a tighter band than the gap between any of them and Burke County, ND, which makes it a genuine outlier here rather than one end of a wide local spread. Burke County, ND has the highest work from home of the 6 areas compared here.
Common questions about commuting in Burke County, North Dakota.
Is living in Burke County, North Dakota good for avoiding long commute costs?
Commuters here spend an estimated 177 hours a year on the road, worth roughly $5,482 at a typical national wage. That's 54% more than the typical North Dakota commuter spends.
When is peak congestion during the morning commute in Burke County, North Dakota?
Traffic peaks between 07:00 AM – 07:29 AM in Burke County, North Dakota. Leaving before or after this window is the single easiest way to avoid the heaviest local congestion, though 07:30 AM – 07:59 AM also sees a secondary bump.
Do people use public transit in Burke County, North Dakota?
Public transit usage is significantly lower here than typical: about 0.0% of commuters use it versus 0.3% in North Dakota, meaning a personal vehicle is essential for most workers.
Where are the quickest and slowest commutes among counties in North Dakota?
Among counties in North Dakota, the shortest average commutes are in McIntosh County (6.9 min), Foster County (7.7 min), Pierce County (7.7 min). The longest are in McHenry County (28.9 min), Renville County (23.5 min), Oliver County (22.8 min).